Liaquat Ali, a spokesperson for the government-owned hospital in Bajaur, stated on Wednesday, “Up to this point, a total of 63 individuals have lost their lives in the act of suicide bombing.”

Currently, there are 123 more individuals who were injured in the attack near the Afghanistan border and are receiving medical attention, as stated by a hospital representative.

Ali stated that some of the wounded individuals were being treated at hospitals in Peshawar, the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir visiting those injured in Khaar (Bajaur) suicide blast in CMH Peshawar. pic.twitter.com/x2IREdm58n

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) August 1, 2023

The responsibility for the attack on a gathering of JUI-F supporters, led by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, is claimed by the armed group ISIS (ISIL).

JUI-F is part of the Pakistan Democratic Alliance, a political coalition affiliated with the government in which Rehman plays a leading role.

Rehman has requested the apprehension of all individuals responsible for the bombing.

Prime Minister Sharif declared that the perpetrators behind the recent suicide attacks in Pakistan were getting support from “Afghan citizens” situated on the neighboring side.

“The Prime Minister noted with concern the involvement of the Afghan citizens in the suicide blasts,” a statement from Sharif’s office said.

The observation was made regarding the freedom of action that the hostile elements have in planning and carrying out these cowardly attacks on innocent civilians from the sanctuaries located across the border.

Increase in assaults

Since two years ago, the border regions in western Pakistan have experienced a dramatic increase in attacks as the Taliban has resurged to regain power in Afghanistan.

The Taliban authorities have consistently failed to fulfill their pledge of not allowing foreign fighters to use Afghan territory as a staging ground for attacks, a key part of the accord that the United States-led forces saw after 20 years of occupation.

The government Afghan spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, told the news agency AFP that the attack in Bajaur was a criminal act and incidents like these should be prevented, as they are coordinated and happening in certain places.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is very serious about preventing its soil from being used against anyone, and we won’t allow anyone to create a sanctuary here.

The Bajaur explosion has been condemned, nevertheless, it has executed numerous lethal assaults in Pakistan since the previous year when it terminated a truce with the government. TTP is an independent faction yet affiliated with the Afghan Taliban, recognized as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, is the Pakistani Taliban.

More than 100 individuals, primarily law enforcement officers, lost their lives in a mosque explosion that occurred in February at the police headquarters in Peshawar. In January, a bombing incident claimed the lives of 74 individuals at a mosque located in Peshawar. Additionally, in 2014, a Taliban assault on a school managed by the military resulted in the tragic deaths of 147 individuals, with the majority being schoolchildren.